Last week I talked about how the Eastern men’s basketball team was on the rise.

No one saw the revived basketball team I wrote about — they didn’t see it Saturday against Division III Aurora University.

I apologize, but I am going to stick with what I said. This team has the talent to compete for the Ohio Valley Conference Championship, but just maybe it has too much talent.

What could possibly be the problem with a team that has as much senior leadership as it does and the second leading scorer in the nation in guard Henry Domercant?

Depth, something that most coaches would love to have, may actually be hurting the Panthers.

On any given night, head coach Rick Samuels could plug somebody into the starting lineup who had not started the game before and expect to see the same style of play that the previous starter had.

So why is this a problem?

A coach would love to be able to replace somebody who gets injured or is struggling with another capable body, right?

The problem lies in team chemistry. Samuels has two true starters who consistently get minutes no matter what is going on in the game with Domercant and junior center Jesse Mackinson, but it stops there.

With the starting lineup changing so often, it is hard for players to get used to playing with the other players that are on the court when they make it into the game. Take the OVC-leading Morehead State Eagles for example. The Eagles (13-5, 8-0) have three players that play above or near 30 minutes a game and two others that average more than 20 minutes.

Domercant is the only Panther who averages more than 30 minutes a game with only Mackinson and senior guards J.R. Reynolds and Craig Lewis putting in more than 20 minutes a night.

Then there are a half dozen players who also contribute quite a bit of time on the floor. The depth makes it a difficult situation for Samuels, who has to look down his bench each game at several players who want to play, and in most cases deserve to play.

The lack of parity on the Panthers doesn’t lend itself to have players besides Domercant and Mackinson with talent that screams, “Start me!”

It could have been easier for Samuels if players like Jake Sinclair, who earned every minute he has played this season, wouldn’t have played past expectations and taken away minutes from other players.

Basically, if the players can begin to mesh well with each other, then they can have a legitimate shot at competing for the conference title. Until then, the struggles may continue for the Panthers.But if I were Samuels, I would rather have this problem than have no good players at all.